November 2011

11/07/2011

Prince Harry is in the final phase of training in Apache attack helicopters. (Getty Images)

The mayor of Gila Bend, Arizona, has a blunt message for Prince Harry: Hands off our gals.

“There are probably some fathers here in Gila Bend who would go to extremes to protect their daughters,” Mayor Ron Henry told the Daily Mail.

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and we have some very pretty girls here. Some of the dads won't take too kindly to a Prince fornicating the night away and drinking into the small hours.

“It is a very quiet town with a lot of good Christian people. This isn't a party town.”

Got it, Harry?

The prince is in this tiny corner of Arizona to complete his Apache helicopter training, which began a month ago in California.

Gila Bend is home to about 2,000 residents, an air force base, two bars and a few motels, including the eye-catching Space Age Lodge (right).

Set in the middle of the Arizona desert, its surrounding landscape is a good imitation of the conditions that a military force would encounter in Afghanistan.

Prince Harry has already been spotted around town. On Friday, he and about 30 fellow military types surprised the locals by showing up at the Little Italy Pizzeria. It’s reported that Harry ate a pizza covered with pepperoni, bacon and sausage.

This week, it’s the Shrimp Festival in Gila Bend, though there’s been no sighting of Harry gobbling shrimp yet.

As for the girls, the party-hard Harry won’t have as much opportunities here as he did in San Diego, where he was visited several night spots and was even rumoured to be romancing a cocktail waitress.

"Gila Bend is a nice small town,” said Michelle Green, a waitress at the Little Italia. “But we don't even have a movie theatre to take a girl on a date."

So, what’s a prince to do?

"I would advise the Prince to take in the beautiful sights of the desert," suggested the mayor.

11/05/2011

Will and Kate have selected a permanent home in London, just a stone’s throw from where they are now and with more than a little royal history.

They’ve chosen Apartment 1A in Kensington Palace, the former home of the Queen’s sister, Princess Margaret. She lived in the four-storey, 20-room home for close to 40 years, until her death in 2002 at age 71. The residence was opened to the public in 2004 and is currently rented out for private meetings and dinners (dining room photo on right).

“The extent of the work needed to turn the apartment back into a home is not yet known, but it is expected that the apartment will not be ready for occupation until at least the middle of 2013,” a spokesman for St James’s Palace said.

One estimate puts the renovation bill at $1.6 million, including new plumbing and the removal of asbestos. The costs will be shared between Household government grants and the Royal Family itself. The Palace is already undergoing extensive renovations as it prepares for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee next year.

For Kate and Will, it means moving to the other end of Kensington Palace. They now stay at the two-bedroom Nottingham Cottage on the Palace grounds when in London, which isn’t that often since William is stationed at the RAF base in Wales.

Kensington Palace has been the traditional stomping ground for royals since the late 1600s. Prince Charles and Diana raised William and Harry in Apartment 8, which has since been turned into offices. Several other Royal Family members live at the Palace and it’s expected that Harry will move into Nottingham Cottage after Will and Kate move.

There’s plenty of history within the walls of 1A itself. Before Margaret, it had been home to Princess Louise, the daughter of Queen Victoria. She lived there from 1875 until her death in 1939. It remained vacant until Margaret and Lord Snowdon (right, at their wedding in 1960) moved in, undergoing major renovations to bring it up to 20th century standards (the dining room is at right -- pink and turquoise were Margaret's favourite colours). Margaret continued to live there after the couple's divorce in 1978.

During the swinging ‘60s, it was one of London’s most desired hotspots with a royal couple who liked to party and be seen with British celebrities like the Beatles and Peter Sellers.

When Will and Kate first went looking for a roof to live under in London, it was Apartment 1A that reportedly left the best impression on Kate. Plenty of potential for a fix-it-upper and room to start that much anticipated family. It took months of negotiations, with the Queen’s blessing, to move stewardship of the property back to the Royal Household after being managed by the Historic Royal Palaces.

“There is no doubt that their presence will put the Palace more in the public eye and, we hope, encourage more people to come and explore its history,” said a spokesman for Historic Royal Palaces.

11/04/2011

Prince William does a taste test on a high-energy paste that is used to treat severe malnutrition. When William offered Kate a sample, she declined. (Getty Images)

Here we go again.

There's not a day goes by that there isn't another report that the Duchess of Cambridge may be in a family way.

The latest comes from the Sun in London, which is using evidence gathered from Kate and William's visit to a UNICEF emergency relief depot in Copenhagen. During the tour, William had a taste of a protein paste which contains nuts and is used to treat malnutrition.When he offered a sample to Kate, she refused.

From there, the Sun in London made the leap that perhaps Kate -- who is not allergic to nuts -- deliberately avoided the food because she is pregnant.

"Something you're nut telling us, Kate?" prolaimed the Sun headline. The story went on to point out that "for years government experts urged mums-to-be to avoid peanuts, fearing a link to allergies."

That may have been true, but more recent studies have said that, unless you have a nut allergy, eating them while pregnant is okay, even beneficial.

Adding fuel to their fire, the betting agency Ladbrokes has stopped accepting bets on whether Kate will have a baby before the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebration in June.

Throw in the news last week that the laws of succession are changing to eliminate the discrimination against first-born girls naturally ascending to the throne, and you have the makings of an impending birth announcement.

Replying to the nut refusal, one royal source told the Sun: "Pregnancy is not the only explanation. The Duchess is still new to appearing in front of the cameras at official events.

"It is perfectly plausible that she may not yet feel comfortable eating while the cameras are focused on her."

Judging the still very slim figure she showed during her Copenhagen visit, the visual evidence is that if she is indeed pregnant, she's hiding it rather well. If and when there is an announcement, it is guaranteed that it won't happen before the pregnancy is at least three months along.

11/03/2011

Sarah Burton of Alexander McQueen designed both Kate and Pippa's dresses for the royal wedding. Kate's ivory lace and satin gown featured French Chantilly and English Cluny lace, and hand-cut flowers from lace woven onto ivory silk tulle. (Getty Images)

We know this much about Sarah Burton – she can keep a secret.

The creative director for the Alexander McQueen fashion house sealed her lips for months as she went about designing the dress that all the world’s eyes were on for the royal wedding.

Heck, she even kept her parents in the dark.

“It was so great to actually keep a secret, especially in this day and age when everyone talks about everything,” Burton (right) told UK’s Vogue magazine in its December issue.

Burton’s parents only found out their daughter’s secret the night before the big day and their first glimpse came through a periscope they used as they huddled with the masses on the Mall.

Who was designing Kate Middleton’s dress was, of course, the Great Wedding Guessing Game in the months leading up to the April 29 wedding.

Burton, 37, was one of many designers who were quizzed about being the Chosen One. Like all the others – including Bruce Oldfield, Amanda Wakeley, Jenny Packham, Daniella Issa Helayel and Alice Temperley -- she denied it.

Only a small group of insiders who were actually working on the dress were aware of her involvement, she told Vogue.

As a cover story for the times she was called away to do dress fittings, she told people she was working on a McQueen show scheduled a few days after the wedding. Other times, she found herself just fibbing.

“But I remember other people asking me, ‘Are you coming in on Friday?” And I'd say, "Oh, yeah, see you in the morning." I'd be scheduling meetings knowing full well I wasn't going to be there for them,” she told Vogue.

It wasn’t until the wedding day arrived that Burton says she finally stood back and let the moment sink in. “I remember standing in Westminster Abbey thinking, 'This is unreal'. It was like a fairy tale,” she said. “And all I could think was, 'I hope I don't trip over.’ I didn't realize the enormity of it until much nearer the wedding day. It was a magical experience.”

It was also the culmination of an intense year in which she absorbed the loss of her friend and boss McQueen, who committed suicide in February 2010. The creative future of his line fell on Burton’s shoulders.

“Out of such terrible, tragic times and from under this dark cloud came that dress,” she said.

The final cost of the dress, was reportedly upwards of $400,000. It has since earned its keep by bringing in record revenues for the summer exhibition at Buckingham Palace.

The visit was short and the weather chilled, but the Will and Kate show still managed to pack a media wallop on Wednesday.

And the knockout punch was Kate actually taking part in her first press conference.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge flew into Copenhagen to team up with the Danish royals in a visit to the UNICEF emergency supply warehouse, where medicine and food was being prepared for distribution in East Africa, where a humanitarian crisis is affecting an estimated 13 million people.

As cameras clicked and whirred, the royal foursome went from the packing room to the warehouse to a briefing room to the airport where they viewed the 747 that will be winging 45 tonnes of supplies to the stricken region.

Kate, making a rare public pronouncement, called the situation "shocking."

"A huge amount still has to happen with hundreds of children still malnourished at the moment," she said in a brief encounter with media. (TO VIEW A VIDEO, CLICK HERE).

Prince William asaid the crisis had been going on for "at least 100 days now, and it's not getting any better."

"The rains have come now and ... that doesn't necessarily mean things are going to get better at all. In fact, disease becomes a huge issue," William said. "And so it's very much a case of anyone who can do anything to help, please do."

In the world of fundraising, this was a home run for UNICEF, who attained maximum visibility and probably a decent jolt of funds because of the royals' appearance. (Click here to make a donation or find out more on the relief effort.)

Africa has been of special interest to William and his brother Harry, who have done charity work there. It was also in an East African nation, Kenya, where William proposed to Kate in 2010. One of the workers at the UNICEF centre said Kate told him that Kenya was definitely in the royals' tour plans.

Of course, anywhere Kate and Will show up is bound to draw a crowd, and Kate stood out even more from her regal teammates on this trip with her bright burgundy LK Bennett coat to ward off the 10C temperatures. She also wore a Vicceli Italy belt and brown suede boots.

The visit to Denmark is the British royal couple's first overseas trip since their trip to Canada in the summer.

It's almost 30 years since Grace Kelly died in a car crash, a tragic end to a what some thought was a fairytale.

In the years since, the actress-turns-princess story has worn a little thin with revelations of the beautiful Kelly going through of the same problems mere mortals struggle with. Nevertheless, the fascination with her continues, a glimpse of her life being turned into an exhibition called "Grace Kelly: From Movie Star to Princess."

It's in Toronto from Nov. 4 to Jan. 22 and features memorabilia from her life as both an actress and a princess. The event is being launched with the help of Monaco's newest royal couple, Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene.

Albert is one of three children born to Princess Grace and Prince Rainier. He and his bride made their first trip together to this side of the ocean to attend the Princess Grace Awards Gala in New York on Tuesday (right photo), then head to Toronto for the opening of the Grace Kelly exhibition Wednesday night.

Much like his mother, Albert's life has had its share of drama and nasty rumour. On Wednesday, the couple appeared on the "Today" show with Matt Lauer, once again answering the questions that have dogged them since their elaborate wedding on July 1 spawned talk of Charlene trying to be a runaway bride and the couple sleeping in separate quarters. The couple was well prepared when the subject came up.

Wittstock: Why would we go through the effort to have our most intimate dearest friends join us for us to be reluctant? It sounded a bit hilarious.

Lauer: So there was no runaway bride.

Wittstock: Not at all.

Okay. Done then. Let's move on.

We can't leave this particular Monaco chapter without noting a few of the 11 movies that remain a legacy for Grace Kelly. Here's some of our favourites:

High Noon (1952)

Grace's good looks seem a little out of place against the backdrop of the wild west, but no one was complaining. With aging marshal Gary Cooper having a showdown with the bad guys, Kelly is left to play the peace-loving wife who, in the end, stands by her man.

Mogambo (1953)

Kelly won a Golden Globe as best supporting actress opposite Clark Gable and Ava Gardner in this John Ford film set in Africa. Ironically, Kelly was second choice for the role -- Gene Tierney dropped out at the last minute.

Rear Window (1953)

The Alfred Hitchcock thriller has Grace playing the alluring girlfriend of Jimmy Stewart, stuck in his apartment while spying on the neighbours. One of Hitchcock's best.

The Country Girl (1954)

Bing Crosby plays a down-and-almost-out actor opposite the long-suffering Grace in this drama that earned her the Academy Award for best actress. The film had seven nominations, also winning for best screenplay.

To Catch a Thief (1955)

High Society (1956)

This was the last Hollywood film by Kelly, uniting her with crooners Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra. The musical was released three months after she had become Monaco's Princess Grace.

Princess Grace

Finally, a role that could last a lifetime. Kelly married Prince Rainier on April 18, 1956. Despite some opportunities, she was never lured back to the big screen. In fact, word is that Rainier forbid the showing of Kelly films in Monaco, although Kelly continued to support the arts until her death in 1982.

11/01/2011

The white outline of a scar on Kate's left temple is clearly visible at a charity event last week.

Kate Middleton's three-inch scar on her temple might not make Coaches Corner, but the story behind it apparently did have its roots in hockey.

Well, okay, field hockey. Close enough.

One of Kate's friends from her days at Marlborough College (1995-2000) tells Grazia magazine that the future Duchess of Cambridge had once told her the story of a "sporting accident."

"She was hit on the head when she was 14 or 15," said the firend. "Later, she was taken to hospital by her mother and had to have an operation. I can only presume the two were connected."

"There were whispers wondering if she might have had a brain tumour."

Kate's sporting life at Marlborough -- a private school with a $35,000-a-year pricetag at the time -- included tennis, netball, high jumping and, yes, field hockey. The Daily Mail suggests Kate was hit on the head by a hockey stick, leading to the permanent reminder of her athletic prowess.

St. James's Palace has been reluctant to say much about the scar, which was most visible with her hair up and pulled back for a charity event last week. It was first thought it might be a sign of hair extensions, but the Palace set the record straight by confirming it was "related to a childhood operation" more than 10 years ago.

Coincidentally, Prince William also has a scar on his left temple. It fails to have the rough-and-tumble history of a field hockey game, though. He was hit on the head by a golf club when he was 13.

Some say Kate Middleton leads the women's fashion curve. Some say she just follows it and has yet to establish her own style mark.

The argument has swung most decisively in to the former category with her anointment as Britian's best dressed woman by the influential Harper's Bazaar.

“Catherine’s incredible style evolution has gripped us all,” said Bazaar editor Lucy Yeomans. “She gave us the year’s -- if not the century’s -– most thrilling fashion moment at the royal wedding, and is shaping up as an amazing ambassador for British designers and the high street.”

From the royal wedding, through her Canadian and California tour and public appearances since, the 'Kate Effect' is undeniable. Not that the designer's needed her help, but the fashion brands she favours have grown only stronger: Jenny Packham (pictured below), Alexander McQueen, Erdem, Amanda Wakely, Issa, etc.

"All of our judges were agreed on choosing her -– something that very, very rarely happens," said Harper's features director Clare Coulson.

The magazine's list also includes singer Florence Welch, model Kate Moss, and Samantha Cameron, wife of British Prime Minister David Cameron. Here's how the magazine's style list breaks down:

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